First off, introduce yourself (as if they already don't know)

Nyoken: I'm nyoken. I was formerly on EG's brood war team. I play terran and I played for about 10 years.

Did you pick Terran because it was the easiest or because you like money?

Nyoken: It was the easiest. A long time ago I used to be a zerg player but then a patch came out that made the spawning pool cost 200 minerals instead of 150 and the lurker upgrade increased from 125/125 to 200/200. So, yeah I changed because Zerg got nerfed.

Story of my life.

Nyoken: Lol.

So how did you first get into starcraft?

Nyoken: I went to a friend's house and saw him playing it. A couple hours later I bought it and played it non stop. I played 2on2 for a while but eventually switched to 1on1.

There isn't enough e-paper to list _ALL_ of your accomplishments, but could you list some of your most notable BW performances?

Nyoken: Lol. I don't have many accomplishments. I guess qualifying for WCG every year since 2003 is an accomplishment. I got second twice, once in 2007 and second in the last one which was 2009? I also won the first WCG US Open and that's pretty much all I can think of. I got to go to WCG Grand Finals in 2007, which was really cool.
I had 2 goals in my starcraft career. One was making it to the WCG Grand Finals and the other was making it to korea. I didn't make it out of groups because I messed up but that's just how it goes sometimes.

Ok. How did you first start competing in broodwar?

Nyoken: A long time ago there was a channel called nohunters. A lot of good people played there and that's where I started playing 1on1. Then a korean server called Game-i opened up. It was the best ladder system ever, highly competitiive and you could play anyone there. Boxer, Nada, Yellow, etc. I played that a ton and that's pretty much how I started out.

What are some of your most memorable BW experiences?

Nyoken: Going to the WCG Grand Finals was one of the most memorable. I met a bunch of people there and it was my first really big tournament. Of course WCG USA is pretty big too, but there's usually only about 10 people there whereas Grand Finals has a lot more than that and the player pool is a lot tougher. I think my most memorable moment was in the WCG US Open because I won against Froz which is someone that I had never beaten in a tournament before and I wanted to beat him specifically pretty badly!

Do you still play broodwar pretty regularly?

Nyoken: No, I just installed it this week so I'll have only practiced for 5 days or so. Despite that I think I can do decently unless everyone has been playing it for a while. Sc2 has definitely corrupted my playing ability though so that makes it even harder to relearn how to play.

Does knowing that LzGaMeR could join this tournament at any moment keep you up at night?

Nyoken: I hope LzGaMeR plays this tournament because then I might actually win a game.

Lolol

Nyoken: Lmao.

Are you looking forward to playing any of the participants in particular?

Nyoken: G5, only because it would be a rematch of the last WCG USA, but only if he hasn't been very active. If he has, then I'm sure it would get pretty ugly for me real quick.

What's your favorite ice cream?

Nyoken: Lol, rocky road obviously.
You know Ret said he wasn't impressed with rocky road? He's nuts.

What a joker, that kid's obviously crazy. Whats your favorite candy bar?

Nyoken: You're a clown, but Mr. goodbar.

what are you going to spend the prize pool on after you win it? Maybe you could buy yourself a new profile picture, you clown.
Any final shoutouts before you go? "i'd like to thank Machine for teaching me everything there is to know about this game, I probably wouldn't have gone anywhere without him"

Nyoken: I don't have any shout outs. I just wish more USA ppl would play in the tournament. Machine, LzGaMeR, iNcontroL, Artosis, Day[9] or whoever. And yeah, obviously shout out to machine for showing me exactly how not to play this game.

Could you please introduce yourself?

SarenS: My name is Pierre Guivarch, 25 years old and also known as SarenS.

What are you up to these days? Skype indicates that you're in UK?

SarenS: Indeed, I moved to England last year, and I am currently working there.

How did you start playing Brood War?

SarenS: I discovered BW through a friend in middle-school with TuZeR. Then, I learned about the competitive scene with Elky and BoxeR at WCG, that's what motivated to play the game more seriously. The numerous aspects of this game are fascinating.

Do you sometimes think of playing BW again, just for fun? Many former top French players like KenZy, Bundy Freman, etc. came back recently.

SarenS: Nope, I haven't touched BW ever since SC2 came out, even a bit before actually... it's been almost 5 years.

In 2006, you organized the SarenS Nostalgic Tournament, a tourny with old-school maps for people nostalgic of the 2001 era. Did you imagine that 8 years later, you would be yourself invited to a tournament like the BW Reunion Tour, based on a similar concept?

SarenS: 8 years... XD No, I would never have imagined. Especially at that period, I was already considering ourselves old-school. Playing in a tour with all these players is really exciting. Actually now, we're even past the "old-school" stage. We're Starcraft grandpa's gathering for a tour. We should just make it a charity tour too. I'd like to thank Artanis for the invitation by the way!

Did you feel any kind of pressure when you became the #1 French player? It was certainly not easy to come after Elky...

SarenS: Of course I did, at least to a certain extent. Following up Elky gave me a bit of pressure. Also when you reach the top, the pressure is different. You face lesser players who know a lot about your style, and are very motivated because they have nothing to lose playing you. When I was number 1 in France, WCG had just stopped having seeds for France due to Elky's retirement, and there wasn't a lot of interesting French tours to play in. I can tell you that my motivation and the pressure I felt playing these lesser players for "not much" was very different from theirs.

What is the most memorable event of your Starcraft career?

SarenS: My participation to Blizzard's Sandlot Tournament, and the victory of our team, YGClan. [note: SarenS is quite modest here as he was a key player in the victory of his team, beating EX in the last set of the grand finals]. I'd also say that the overall BW experience as well as everyone I met playing this game made a mark on me.

Who would you like to beat in this tournament, and why?

SarenS: No one in particular. I don't think I was involved in any kind of rivalry before. My goal here is to enjoy this tournament as much as possible, and try to rape some old school guys.

I've seen a lot of participants, TT1 and PredY notably, practicing on iCCup recently, have you started to practice as well? Are your BW sensations coming back quickly?

SarenS: Yes, I've started to practice a bit with the few free time I have. Sensations are coming back rapidly even though the first games were a disaster. Switching back to BW from SC2 allows you to fully realized how assisted is SC2. The pleasure of playing BW is also coming back, and that is the most enjoyable!

Any last words?

SarenS: I just want to wish good luck to all participants of this tournament, but especially to have fun! Thanks again to the organizers for the invitation and I hope that the community will enjoy this Saturday!

Could you introduce yourself to us?

Ptak: My name is Matija Vragovic,also known as MgZ)Ptak. I'm 30 years old. I have a wife and 2 kids.

When did you start playing Starcraft?

Ptak: It was a long time ago... In 1997 I started playing with my school friends. Online, I think it was 2000. We started playing Big Game Hunters 4v4 30 min no rush. I think everyone started that way. I didn't usually win, there were better guys than me.

Why did you pick Zerg?

Ptak: At first, we all played Random becouse it was more fun and it was cool to know how to play all races. But later, I see my self as a zerg user because I play a very agressive style and with Terran and Protoss you must be passive.

I understand. What's been your most fun BW experience?

Ptak: My WCG wins are up there of course. The trips to Singapore in 2005, Monza Italy in 2006, 2008 Cologne in Germany, in 2009 only the prize and Los Angeles, USA in 2010. I also won one WCG for Starcraft 2 in 2011 and I finally went to Korea, to the city of Busan and completed my dream of going to Korea. In 2007 I also won the WCG, but they just told me I couldn't go and gave me a $3000 prize, I have no idea why that happened.

Weird. What's been your favourite experience out of all of them?

Ptak: The WCG in Monza, Italy was on a Formula 1 track, and gamers could be driven in a BMW M3 with a pro driver... Well, that experience was really SICK!

Haha, that sounds awesome. Did you consider asking if you could drive?

Ptak: Hahaha no that was not an OPTION! We also had to sign an agreement where we say that we understand if something happens and that they're not responsible.

I understand. Still, that's really cool. Your liquipedia page says a few interesting things about you. "He is well known for his (funny) Engrish comments. He dislikes cheeses and often teases his opponents after their failed attempts at ending the game early. " Do you agree with them?

Ptak: Heh..i think evryone can understend me when I talk English and that is the important thing. About the other thing, well, that is true.

Is there a memorable game in your mind where someone cheesed you and you teased them about it?

Ptak: Well, I fought with ClouD all the time. Even today we cant stand each other, he's called me noob for like 10 years and I won a mass amount of games from him in BW and in SC2.. I think that became a game... It became funny after so many years.

Okay, you've traveled to Korea later on in SC2. How was that experience?

Ptak: Great. That nation is really special. I have never seen anything like that before. Everything is in order, everyone knows their place. There is no loud talk. I was there for like 5 days and I didnt see one police car!

It sounds like you really like order. Is it that different in Croatia?

Ptak: No it is not about that.. This you must see your self and you will understand it.

I see, that's interesting. Is there anyone in the tournament you'd really like to beat?

Ptak: ClouD! But I'm out of practice and with 2 small children it's hard to find time to play.

I can understand that. How's family life treating you?

Ptak: Well, it's hard. Very hard. A+ on iccup was a piece of cake compared to this. Might be the hardest thing in life, but I enjoy every moment of it.

Aww, that's wonderful to hear. What are some of your favourite artists?

Ptak: Nick Cave is for me one and only artist.. Ofc i love other music but this guy is something else.. His live album from Royal Albert Hall is something that evry true fan of good music must listen. Pure art.

What makes Nick Cave stand out from everything else to you?

Ptak: He wrote like 150 songs, sings, plays piano, organ, harmonica, guitar, percussion, saxophone, drums.. What more do you want?

Good points. Any last words before we close it out?

Ptak:I really hope I won't be the worst noob in the tournament!

Could you please introduce yourself to us?

CastrO: Hi everyone, I'm CaStrO the best friend of BW! I'm back to the game, though only for the BW Reunion tournament.

I'm sure everyone remembers their best friend. What made you pick up Starcraft?

CastrO: I started playing starcraft at age 14 with version 1.14, when there was still an internet cyber cafe with some friends. I remember thinking we weren't going to stay home and decided to play StarCraft when we were bored. We played Diablo 2 among other games and I started to play BW but I was still a newbie. I remember everyone beat me and so I said to myself: "one day I shall beat everyone in my city and travel around Peru, win tournaments and represent my country."

So you wanted to represent your country from the start?

CastrO: Yes, the game made me so horny and the just installed internet in the cyber cafe allowed me to learn more about the game. I started to download replays of other players and when that happened I realized that StarCraft was a big game and very familiar to a worldwide audience. I wanted to be part of that world.

That's awesome. You came first in the peruvian qualifiers in WCG 2008 and got to travel to Cologne, Germany where you played Stork. Tell me all about that experience.

CastrO: Well, my dream was always to represent Peru in the WCG. Since traveling, no Peruvian ever passed through the group phase, forgetting the great feat of Josez who beat BoXeR. In WCG 2008 I felt my best form. Playing against Stork, and meeting Jaedong and Luxury was something I will never forget. The best in the world in front of me omg! I was excited to face Stork. I was confident as my best game was ZvP, I thought I had a chance to beat him, and I did not feel nervous or anything like that. I thought I could beat the big Stork, but unfortunately it didn't happen. If Ace (the first place finisher in the group) had not taken the walkover for me being 5 minutes late, I would have won from Ace and easily progressed farther than I did in WCG2008. I wanted to win the entire tournament.

That's very ambitious of you. Unfortunately it didn't happen. Let's go back a little bit though, what made you pick Zerg?

CastrO: That's easy. The first reps I downloaded were from the best zerg player YellOw.

So if you downloaded YellOw replays, should you not want to be second? :D

CastrO: Yes.

So why not second?

CastrO: ...

Okay nevermind. Is there anyone in the tournament you really want to beat?

CastrO: ArCNeON is a gay toss, so many cannons I need kill to them all.

Oookaaay, let's change the subject. What are some of your favourite artists?

CastrO: The Black Eyed Peas, Kanye West, Outkast, Britney Spears, Eminem are great.

Do you like going to concerts?

CastrO: I would have gone to see the frontwoman of The Black Eyed Peas in concert but I didn't have the money.

Too bad. What would happen if you were stuck on an abandoned island with a Protoss player?

CastrO: Ha ha ha, that never would happen, but I imagine you would make love!

You would make love with a protoss player? I thought you just said you hated them!

CastrO: I mean figuratively, because that would never happen in Peru. The island is abandoned and you would die there so you mind as well have fun!

Alright, I think we're there. Any last words before we close out the interview?

CastrO: Good! Everyone, excuse me for my bad English and players should train because they will not find me easy to beat. Gl hf to all and until soon!